Great Picnic Party Games for the Whole Family

Playful picnic party games can turn your next picnic into a success. Involve the whole family, and your picnic party will be remembered fondly long afterward. Regardless of the age differences in your group, these picnic games will entertain everyone.

Plate PortraitsWhat You Need: Paper plates, markers/colored pencils/crayonsHow To Play: Even sitting at the picnic table can become a game. If you need the kids to stay in the picnic area for a certain amount of time, or want to find something for them to do, why not try this suggestion?

Invite everyone to take a paper plate and draw a portrait of someone else on the plate with the art materials provided. Display the plate portraits later, and have a contest to see who can recognize guests depicted in the drawings. Give awards for the cutest, funniest, most accurate and most creative.

Scavenger HuntWhat You Need: A bag for each team, a list of items that the teams need to find. Include picnic items, such as an olive or a plastic fork, but also include harder-to-find items, such as a clover, a dandelion, a piece of moss, a live ant, a buttercup, a bottlecap or even something purple. Hand out prizes for the winning team, or to everyone if you are playing with extremely young childen.How To Play: Divide into teams. Give each team the list of clues and a bag. The team that comes back with the items in their bag wins. Award prizes if desired.

Relay GamesWhat You Need: Segments of rope, potato sacks, a few water balloons or assorted clothing, depending on the type of relay race selected.

Three-Legged Race: Divide into pairs, and tie the left leg of one person to the right leg of the person's partner, tied at the ankle. All sets of partners line up. When "Go" is called, they have to race to the designated finish line.

Potato Sack Race: Everyone gets a burlap potato sack, and she has to step into the sack and hold it. Everyone lines up at the starting line. When "Go" is called, participants should hop in their sacks to the finish line.

Water Balloon Toss: Everyone divides into partners. Partners face each other in two lines. Each set of partners has a water balloon. The partners toss the balloon to each other, and then everyone takes a step back to toss and catch the balloon again. The last set of partners with an unbroken balloon wins.

Any of these picnic party games can keep kids-and maybe even the adults-occupied on a warm summer day.

Enjoy the outdoors together with a picnic. Whether you are planning picnics with kids, a family reunion or a romantic meal for two, an outdoor setting can make a meal all the more enjoyable. Here are some tips for planning perfect picnics, whatever the occasion.